Serket

Food goes until the next meal, so not being home isn't a problem. I'd probably start with taking dinner away - that way he might be more likely to learn fast and eat breakfast, otherwise you're leaving a hungry bored puppy home all day and he might be a bit destructive

I think it's too far. Gypsy's breeder says no formal exercise before 12months old - playing in the yard, or running around a park or the beach is ok, but not walking long distances and especially not on hard surfaces like roads and footpaths. Of course you need to practice on-lead manners and the easiest thing is to walk around the block, but the hard surfaces are not good for growing bones. Training wears them out too - mentally exhausting them means you don't come home from a long walk and find you still (somehow) have a hyperactive dog 10 minutes later

Totally up to you!!!!! Someone with a Lappie has to come, so I can meet one in the flesh and see if I need to start on my campaign to convince OH we need one! Oh alright! I'll put it in my diary... Excellent :D

Totally up to you!!!!! :D Someone with a Lappie has to come, so I can meet one in the flesh and see if I need to start on my campaign to convince OH we need one!

If we only have one clam shell pool I think we might have issues :D They'll ALL want to be in there - can anyone else bring one? I can try, but I don't like my chances in a hatchback, in fact I'm not sure it will even fit without the dog, much less with her too.

Well any time of day suits us (within reason, we're 1.5-2 hours away so a 7am start might not be good )

It's over Penrith way. Yeah, I google mapped it after I posted Never driven out that way before, should be interesting, I don't think Gypsy will be much help as a navigator We can do the 12th, mid-late afternoon (3pm? 4 is a bit late maybe..) sounds better due to the heat - is there much/any shade? ETA: I'm assuming it's fenced?

For a dog the size of a ridgeback, I'm not sure the appropriate sized crate would fit in the car? Depends on the car you have of course. I just use a harness for my dog, there's no way her crate would fit in the car - soft crate or wire crate unless I put the seats down

All you Lappie people need to stop....you're in just about every thread showing off your perfect dogs :laugh: Now I want one too!!

Possibly, depending on when. No idea where Erskine Park is though

Kiesha - once you've got them doing that with the collar grab and revving up for the car, perhaps you can transfer it to the crate, once they know that collar grab + revving them up = going somewhere good Susan Garrett says not to stop until you've done stages 1-3 successfully, but I was naughty and stopped at stage 2 because Gypsy was struggling to get that I wanted her to go back into the crate since I wasn't saying or doing anything, and she's already learnt that "bedtime" means go into her crate so she was a bit confused I think. So I stopped and then went back to it late last night with much better success Except that every time she walked out of the crate she turned around and went back in - which is good, it's what is supposed to happen, but what about when you're finished and you don't want the dog in the crate! :nahnah:

Thanks Bub :nahnah: I think we need more photos in the GR thread by the way

Can't offer any advice, but care to share that link for running around objects?

Do most clubs allow you to start at a higher level? I know of some clubs which make everyone start from their basic course in order to do agility/higher level obedience.

If you're looking to spend $1000 total, then maybe the 450D (replaced by the 500D but can still buy new) would be ok? as others have mentioned, you'd need to buy lenses as well and they cost just as much if not more than the camera body I have the 450D, and I'm happy with it, I'll upgrade the lenses before I upgrade the camera itself

No I haven't but I definately think this would work with Chip since he is much more enthusiastic and has more drive - especially where food is related Yet with Kiesha even for food she would still probably just stroll over to it and definately wouldn't pull on her collar thats not lady like The only thing that she really really really drives for is a bird (not really reliable training reinforcement) and the back of the car when I open the garage door and release her from her mat to go for a walk. Bingo... this could be the start of our collar grab games, might see how it works. I think that's going to be my problem too - Gypsy waits nicely for everything, the only thing she'll pull to get to is another dog (which is just as much use as birds, sigh). She won't try to get food on the ground either unless I'm not around, she has to wait for her dinner, etc. I've spent a lot of time teaching her NOT to throw herself at food. She'd throw herself at food on the ground if it just 'appeared' but as soon as I grab her collar she'll relax back into me because she knows it means she can't have it, complete opposite reaction. I heard the DVD was bad, so I got the book instead, no sniffles in the book! That would be lovely! Last night I practised an emergency recall for Erik when he was all worked up because he knew I was eating delicious food in the lounge room away from him. He came tearing around and took a flying leap at my hand from about 70cm away from me. Last week he nailed my thumb twice in the space of a few days in his eagerness for rewards (and not just food rewards). Guess who's biggest training priority at the moment is to bring the drive under control rather than encourage it? Still, it amazes me that he can take a running jump and snap his jaws down on my hand without breaking my skin. Gypsy's done that to me a few times. Most memorably at around 10 weeks she took a flying leap during the zoomies and got my arm between elbow and shoulder. I had bruises surrounding slightly broken skin from her teeth the size of 20c coins. I'm amazed she didn't do more damage. Good thing she's mine and she didn't do that to someone else Gypsy does bitey recalls sometimes, apparently biting me is a pretty big reward She does it gently though, well, she doesn't do any damage anyway. I don't mind at this stage, if it means she comes back

I would LOVE to borrow it! Quick response! Will PM you. Corvus - I can lend it to you next if you like

I got control unleashed + crate games at the same time I've spent WAY more than I should have recently on dog things. I'm happy to lend it if you want to borrow it? I don't know how re-watchable these things are, borrowing them probably makes more sense really.

I only started watching it today, so I'm the armchair expert at this stage but could it help to go back to the beginning, and 'remind' them that being in the crate is AWESOME? Gypsy sleeps in her crate at night, and once she realises we're going to bed she can't get into it fast enough, because she knows she gets a kong or something else she otherwise doesn't get. I've yet to see how that works outside that specific context, but it might be an idea?

I have a fairly small yard, and it took a lot of thinking to decide whether a larger dog would be ok for us in our yard, but in the end I decided that it wasn't the size of the yard that was important, it was the degree of commitment we could provide for regular/daily mental & physical exercise. I think that a dog in a large yard can often be worse off because the owners assume the dog is fine just sitting there in the yard and needs nothing else, or maybe just a walk every now and then. I don't think I'd get a border collie with the yard I've got, or another very active working breed, but I think that writing off all medium/large breed dogs just on backyard size alone is unnecessary. The only other thing with a small yard is that I think access to the house is important - if the dog will just be in the backyard alone then that's a different issue and is not ideal. Gypsy has free access to the house while we're home and when we're gone (well some rooms are blocked off, but she can come and go as she pleases.

Have PM'd you

I've heard a lot of people say this, and so I'm not questioning you in particular but more of a general question - won't you then have a situation where the dog sees you coming and runs because they know you're coming to get them to take them home/give them a bath/trim their nails/etc?

If you were only going to do one more, then I'd make it the 16 week one since that seems to be in line with the recently revised AVA protocol. I'm not at all keen on annual vaccinations and will annoy my vet with titre test talk when the time comes, but with puppy vaccinations I think I'll probably continue to err on the side of what may be paranoia and get 3, but if it was two then the last one would definitely be at 16 weeks I think. If the first one was at 6 weeks, then I'd be too worried to wait until 16 weeks and would get 12 weeks as well (like I've done this time). Parvo is scary I want to do everything I can to avoid it

Answering the original question..... If I recall correctly the recent AVA vaccine protocal changes say that the last puppy vaccine should be given at 16 weeks, and if only one vaccination is to be given it should be that one. Given the choice, I would probably do the first at 8 weeks, and then I don't know if I'd still do 12 and 16 or just 16. I'd like to know why they say if only one vaccination is to be given, it should be at 16 weeks. To me that indicates that only doing two vaccs even at 8 and 12 or similar might possibly not be enough simply due to the timing rather than the number of vaccinations? Many breeders are still doing 6 weeks, and so the decision is largely taken out of buyer's hands - I did 12 and 16 because of the first one being at 6 weeks (C3 for all three so didn't vote either) Joelle - has your breeder done the first vaccination? If so, you're only looking at maximum of two more, not three. You wouldn't do 6wks (breeder) and then 8, 12, 16 If you do 3 it's normally first one by the breeder, and then the other two by you.

Obedience classes should help you get her behaviour under control in a controlled environment with an experienced instructor there to give you advice.